Doctors Are Divided on Who They Want to Be Ohio's Next Governor

One group of doctors favors Democrat Rich Cordray while the Ohio State Medical Association has endorsed Republican Mike DeWine.

STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU

Some 750 doctors said they’re endorsing Democrat for governor Richard Cordray, breaking with the Ohio State Medical Association, which is backing his Republican opponent Mike DeWine. The doctors split over protections for people with pre-existing health conditions.

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The new endorsement

Cordray said he’ll work to lower insurance premiums and drug costs, and to protect millions of Ohioans with pre-existing conditions. And he notes that as attorney general DeWine filed a lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare, which guarantees those protections.

“For the past eight years, he’s been the attorney general. He’s devoted the resources of his office to wiping out coverage for people who have a pre-existing condition to allow insurance companies to drop people,” he said.

DeWine’s campaign said Ohio’s Obamacare lawsuit challenged the constitutionality of the individual mandate, and that what Cordray said is an outright lie.

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Republican Gov. John Kasich and the Democrat who wants to replace him said Ohio needs to fight efforts to overturn the pre-existing conditions requirement for health insurers in the Affordable Care Act. Nearly 5 million Ohioans could be affected if that requirement were tossed out.

Gov. John Kasich says Ohio should be doing everything it can to defend the part of the Affordable Care Act that requires health-care coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. This once again positions Kasich against President Donald Trump, who has said his administration will not fight for the law.

Kasich is strongly opposed to a lawsuit filed by 20 states fighting the part of Obamacare that makes sure no one is denied health care because of pre-existing conditions.

For the first time, the Republican candidate for governor is stating clearly that he would keep Medicaid expansion for all 700,000 Ohioans covered under it. Mike DeWine says he’s been supportive all along, but his opponent says that’s not true.

While accepting the endorsement of the Ohio State Medical Association, DeWine said he’d keep Medicaid expansion but that he’d reform it, including adding work requirements and wellness incentive programs.